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Wear-resistant, electrically or thermally insulating, corrosion-resistant - the demands on component surfaces are very high in many industrial processes and require extreme precision. Atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) is a particularly cost-effective form of thermal spraying which meets the high demands required in industry. The technology has been refined at IKTS for almost thirty years and qualified for various ceramic coatings. Now technologies and know-how are being transferred to commercialization.

Hardmetals will celebrate their 100th anniversary next year and have now been largely optimized. Nevertheless, there are current challenges that lead to novel developments and competitive advantages through higher wear resistance and lower costs, as well as to the efficient use of resources.

How do nanoparticle surfaces react with proteins in blood? How must the surface of the foundation structures of offshore wind turbines be designed to prevent biofilm from growing on them? What properties should the surface of an implant have to grow in well? How to produce customized suspensions for ceramic manufacturing. These are questions that the "Powder and Suspension Characterization" research group at the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS is addressing. The team provides reliable data for a wide range of topics. The many years of experience in analysis and evaluation are a distinctive feature of the group.

Failures of electronic components or even complete circuit boards can be expensive. Electronics, power electronics and sensor system manufacturers now could use functional ceramic phosphors developed at the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS to determine exactly how hot a defective component has become or where the hotspot was on a printed circuit board. This gives manufacturers advantages in the event of complaints and can contribute significantly to quality improvement and product quality assurance.

Using biomass technologies and nutrient recycling, IKTS researchers are working with partners to develop environmentally friendly and high-yield peat alternatives for edible mushroom cultivation. The focus is on the efficient use of regional renewable raw materials and biogenic residues.

In Germany, almost 70 percent of the energy used in industry is spent on thermal processes. Especially with regard to energy efficiency, CO2 reduction and resource conservation, complex questions must be answered. This almost always involves interactions – for example between temperature, time and gas atmosphere – and what influence these have on product properties and manufacturing processes. The “Thermal Analysis and Thermophysics” working group at Fraunhofer IKTS has been investigating thermal processes for 30 years. Since then, a lot has also happened in the laboratories: The simple measuring instruments with analog data output for thermoanalytical and thermophysical parameters have been replaced by modern, digital equipment. In the course of digitization, data is increasingly being coupled and made usable for modeling thermal processes and component properties.

A digital twin is the virtual replica of an object, its mirror image so to speak. It consists of data and models and can describe or predict the behavior of the object. Virtual tests, simulations and risk analyses can be used to identify problems at an early stage and reduce maintenance costs. The data on which the Digital Twin works must be determined in advance. Fraunhofer IKTS is working on such sensors, i.e. sensing devices that measure and provide the required data.

To reduce the burden of environmentally harmful heavy metals and biocides on the oceans, IKTS researchers in Rostock and Dresden are currently developing new types of ceramic coatings for ships and offshore platforms. These particularly durable and sustainable protective layers are designed to keep organisms from covering the maritime structures as gently as possible. Because things are often stormy in this research.

Whether it is precious metal ink for a drug test kit, ceramic screen-printing paste for high-tech sensors or glass solder paste for the airtight joining of ceramic fuel cells – Dr. Sindy Mosch and her team develop the right functional layer for every application. “A versatile and exciting job”, says the materials scientist.

Mobile communication technology is less than 25 years old and has already taken several decisive steps in its development. But for applications such as autonomous driving, much higher data rates are needed. The global goal is to increase the data rate from 20 gigabits per second at a latency of 1 millisecond (5G) to a full 1 terabit per second at a latency of just 0.1 millisecond (6G) by 2030. Ceramic substrate materials and adapted thick-film pastes and inks can make a significant contribution here.